Villanova University’s Center for Irish Studies Presents “The Northern Ireland Peace Process after Brexit”

VILLANOVA, Pa – The United Kingdom’s exit from the European Union has posed profound challenges for the Northern Ireland peace process and significant implications for the constitutional future of the region and politics in Ireland. These challenges have triggered intense engagement from political leaders and scholars on both sides of the Atlantic, with critical alliances emerging between Ireland and the US to protect the 1998 Good Friday Agreement. To examine these challenges, Villanova University’s Center for Irish Studies will present “The Northern Ireland Peace Process after Brexit,” a one-day virtual symposium on Friday, March 12 from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.

This symposium brings together key figures from Northern Ireland and the US who have been at the forefront of the peace process, in both research and practice. Speakers include keynote addresses by Monica McWilliams, PhD, emeritus professor at the University of Ulster, and Brendan O'Leary, PhD, Lauder Professor of Political Science at the University of Pennsylvania, as well as U.S. Democratic Rep. Brendan F. Boyle of Pennsylvania, who has been a pivotal figure in US congressional efforts to protect the Good Friday Agreement during Brexit.

The symposium is free and open to the public, and participants may join for all or select sessions. 

Schedule

8:30 a.m.: Introductory remarks and Welcome

8:45 – 9:45 a.m.: “The Good Friday Agreement: Delivering on what was Promised
”Lecture and Discussion with Monica McWilliams, PhD, emeritus professor at the University of Ulster

10 – 11 a.m.: “‘It really was Brexit, not UKexit:’ Constitutional Restructuring in Great Britain and Ireland”
Lecture and Discussion with Brendan O'Leary, PhD, Lauder Professor of Political Science at the University of Pennsylvania

11:15 a.m. – 12: 15 p.m.: “Brexit, Ireland and the US"
Discussion with U.S. Democratic Rep. Brendan F. Boyle of Pennsylvania
Moderated by Cera Murtagh, PhD, Villanova University

12:15 p.m.: Lunch Break

1:15 – 2.45 p.m.: “New Relationships: Politics on the Island of Ireland after Brexit”
Panel discussion featuring Cera Murtagh, PhD, Villanova University; Dawn Walsh, PhD, University College Dublin; Jonathan Evershed, PhD, University College Cork; Peter McLoughlin, PhD, Queens University Belfast; and Allison McCulloch, PhD, Brandon University.

2: 45 p.m. Closing Remarks

About the Villanova Center for Irish Studies: The Center for Irish Studies at Villanova University has been a leader for four decades in interdisciplinary teaching and scholarship on Ireland in a global framework. The Center connects students to local community organizations while also preparing them to become citizens equipped to take on the world’s most pressing challenges. Through liberal arts-focused academics, multi-disciplinary scholarship and key partnerships, the Center provides students with research, study abroad and employment opportunities.

About Villanova University’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences: Since its founding in 1842, Villanova University’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences has cultivated knowledge, understanding and intellectual courage for a purposeful life in a challenging and changing world. With more than 40 majors across the humanities, social sciences and natural sciences, it is the oldest and largest of Villanova’s colleges, serving more than 4,500 undergraduate and graduate students each year. The College is committed to a teacher-scholar model, offering outstanding undergraduate and graduate research opportunities and a rigorous core curriculum that prepares students to become critical thinkers, strong communicators and ethical leaders with a truly global perspective.